No time for Social Studies?
Social studies is an often-neglected subject in school because it doesn't generally appear on standardized tests. However, informational text comprehension IS tested... and what better way to teach non-fiction reading strategies than through interesting and relevant resources about the world students live in?
Why is social studies so boring?
It's not. The way it's traditionally been taught is boring. Didn't you hate history class when you were in school, memorizing all those meaningless dates and names and places? At the beginning of the school year, not one of my students typically names social studies as his/her favorite subject, and most of them don't even understand what the subject is about. That breaks my heart, because history is all about studying the things that people were passionate enough to fight for and change. Social studies instruction should challenge students to think about what events have made our world the way it is- the lessons should be so engaging and interactive that no child could ever find it boring. I tell my kids on the first day of school that by June, they will be describing themselves as 'history buffs', because we were going to spend the year finding things from the past and the world around us that fascinate them to the point where they wouldn't be able to learn enough.
Teach what the kids want to learn!!
Children are curious about the world around them and love to discover why things are the way they are. I encourage you to base your social studies instruction on current events and student interests as much as possible. Many teachers, myself included, have more freedom to teach what and how we want a in social studies than in any other subject. I have state standards that students need to master, but I don't have to use the (boring) textbook provided. In fact, my kids don't even keep the texts in their desks because we only reference them a few times a year.
Teach what YOU are passionate about!
Even if you're not a history buff, there's probably a time period or culture that has always fascinated you. Pull that in through read-alouds and mini-units. Your enthusiasm will be contagious and the children will begin looking at history as a unique, individual passion, much like reading (we all have certain genres and authors that we enjoy). Teach with your strengths, and try new things. When you change the way you teach it, you change they way they learn it. Kids know when you enjoy talking about your topic.
Two ways to approach social studies instruction: content and reading strategies
The best social studies instruction is a balance of the two. There are some lessons in which you want children to learn about historical events and really delve into the material through projects and meaningful activities. In other lessons, you simply use social studies texts to teach students how to comprehend non-fiction. This can be done with tradebooks, leveled books from your reading series, books from the media center, your social studies textbook, newspapers, magazines, etc. (preferably a variety of these). Children learn how to use captions, photos, graphs, charts, glossaries, bold print, and so on to help them understand what they read. This can be done during your reading block to make the most of your limited time.
Ideas for integrating social studies into your daily routines
1) Use social studies-related texts to teach non-fiction reading strategies during your reading block.
2) When teaching students about biographies, have them research historical figures. Here are some Biography Projects from Mrs. Renz. The site provides directions for the project and student work samples. Mrs. Renz had her children research a famous person in history (links to biography resources are provided), create a timeline and poem, write a report and draw a picture, then dress up as the person and make a presentation. These are great ways to have your kids explore this important genre by researching historical figures that interest them.
3) Use calendar, news, or sharing time to discuss the day in history. The History Place- This Month in History makes it easy to integrate social studies into your daily routine. You can print out a list of interesting and important events in history by month and share them with your class during your calendar time. With a little planning ahead, you can check out related books from your media center and follow-up with a read-aloud, informational text lesson, or comprehension activity. If you have a Macintosh computer, you can put a Today in History widget on your dashboard and have the day's facts at your fingertips. There are lots of ways to incorporate this idea, but I find 'The History Place' exceptionally good because you can see all dates at once and plan ahead, and the events are specifically chosen to be of interest to kids. There's also a Photo of the Week, Speech of the Week, and links to many more History Place resources.
4) During your time in the computer lab (or when students use classroom computers), have them complete historical webquests. Kidipede: History for Kids is a great resource for online scavenger hunts and basic overviews of various time periods in history. Our curriculum requires third graders to learn about a variety of ancient cultures (none of them in depth) and this site has been a great tool for me to familiarize the children with the time periods in a way that is interesting for them and not overwhelming.
5) Use read-alouds to supplement or even drive your social studies curriculum. Pull a handful of key vocabulary words from the book and put them on the board to discuss with students before and after the reading. Allow children to give input on the topic or theme of books. I have a request form in my classroom for students to suggest topics they'd like me to read to them about (slavery, mummies, 9/11/01, wars, Washington DC and New York, endangered species, and famous athletes are popular requests, as well as books about specific countries where the students are from or have relatives living).
6) Leave two time-lines up in your classroom for students to add to throughout the year. I have one from 1800-2010 and one from 5000 BC to current. As we read about different historical events in all subjects (including shared readings, our reading basal series, and science), we compose a brief sentence to go on the appropriate timeline and have a student illustrate it. This helps the kids see how various events relate to one another (i.e. Jim Crow laws were in the 1950's because they were after slavery). I know a middle/high school teacher who has kids keep their own personal timelines in their notebooks. Adding to the timelines takes about 5 minutes out of a lesson and leaves a lasting reference that can be used for more teaching points throughout the year.
7) Set aside a few minutes a day for current events discussion. Each child can be responsible for bringing in an article once a month or once a week to share, or you can have kids bring in things that interest them anytime. Show students how to use newspapers, magazines, or the internet to gather their resources. A great source for interesting current events is Yahoo's Most Viewed Odd News, which gives very short briefings and photos about weird stories from around the world. (Examples: 'Nepal Boy Claims to Be Shortest in the World', 'Moooove Slowly and Don't Hug Cows, Hikers Told in Switzerland', and 'Thieves Have Their Cake But Can't Eat It' (about 2 crooks in Germany who robbed a grocery store and only took a cake). Kids adore these types of stories, and all you have to do is visit the webpage where they're compiled and print out a story or two that appeal to kids. This activity takes up very little time and gets kids interested in reading the news and following what's going on in their world. You can also have some very interesting character-building discussions for some of these articles, such as one recent day's odd news telling of an Iraqi who was forced to change his teeshirt because it had "We Will Not Be Silent" written in English and Arabic- what a great way to talk about censorship and freedom of expression. Kids can have the chance to exchange and defend their views and see firsthand that there are not always right and wrong answers.
Ideas for using social studies to teach reading strategies
Having lesson objectives for two or more subect areas (such as reading and social studies) is called layering. You can have a targeted reading strategy when using social studies text or trade books. See the Non-Fiction Texts page for more ideas. Also, the book below has some FABULOUS ideas, even for younger students.
15 EXCITING ideas for teaching social studies content
Look at your state standards. Chances are, elementary school children no longer have to memorize dates or identify random historical figures like we did in school. Now, students need to understand systems and cultures. This is your license to make instruction hands-on and engaging! The goal is to have kids DISCOVER history, not have it taught to them. This is easier than it sounds. Here are some great activities I learned in a workshop through my school system that you can use over and over with almost any historical event and time period in any grade level:
1) What Would YOU Do?
Before introducing a historical event, such as a war, the slave trade, or the adventures of an early explorer, present the situation to students hypothetically. Have them close their eyes and imagine... or use photos (from the internet) and other artifacts to tell about the political climate or cultural environment of the time. What shapes history are the things that people are willing to fight for and change, so getting students to care about what their ancestors did is critical. Have students think or write independently about how they would have responded to a historical dilemma, and after they have gathered their thoughts, have them discuss. For example, when the English (Pilgrims) wanted religious freedom- would students want to overthrow the government? Try to work with the situation? Someone will eventually suggest finding a new place to live, and that's when you can say, let's find out how people REALLY handled the situation, 500 years ago. Put students in groups and give them three choices based on the discussion- the entire group agrees on one choice. Be sure to discuss how to respectfully agree or disagree. Groups could make a chart listing the reasons for their choice. While this may seem advanced for the elemntary grades, remember that students don't have to give realistic responses or think out all possible consequences: just getting them to THINK about their choices and those of ancient people is enough to get them engaged and thinking critically in a way that is developmentally appropriate.
2) A-Z Vocabulary/ Social Studies Word Wall or Word Bank
Create a word wall for the unit you are studying, and have students suggest words to add. This can be done traditionally on a wall, or in other ways, such as a file folder word bank. These file folders can be kept up for reference during your unit, then put in the writing center for students to continue to incorporate the vocabulary in their writing.
3) Visual Discovery
Introducing new units, topics, or concepts with pictures can be extremely powerful. Type your subject into a search engine and click on 'images' to run a search just for pictures. Show students a FEW powerful images to elicit inferences about the time period or historical event shown. For example, you can show a photo from the 1950's that has two store entrances, one for whites and one for 'colored only'. Have students predict what those terms mean and what's happening in the picture. Students can also write questions they have about the images. This is great to do as pre- and post-unit activities: after the unit, students can interact with the images to demonstrate what they have learned. Ideas for using visual discovery are explained in the picture below: click to read the details.
4) Art History IS History
Since art dates back tens of thousands of years, there is artwork for almost every time period and culture your students will study. Show children paintings and sculptures from the time period and have them make inferences about the culture. Even young children can draw conclusions about the popular styles of dress (and therefore climate and geography), hobbies and interests, and cultural values of ancient people just by looking at artwork. Art is a reflection of the time period and culture it is created in, so any introduction to art is an introduction to history. Check with your art teacher to find additional resources, videos, prints, activities, etc.
5) What Am I?
Create pop-up books for important vocabulary in the social studies units you teach. Each student can pick a term and create one page. Glue the pages together to create a book for your class library. The book can be a pop-up, as shown below. Click the photos to enlarge.
6) Flip Books and Flap Books
Folding paper in various ways can create more interesting presentations for information (rather than having students complete worksheets). They can write a vocab word on the outside of the flap and the definition underneath, etc. Below is just one way to fold.
7) Living Statues
If your students aren't ready to create skits, have them start with this activity. Show photos of statues and discuss where statues are placed. Then have the children work together in group to recreate a historical scene or event in the form of a statue. They can even create the corresponding plaque. Click the photo to read directions.
8) Experiential Exercise
Students love to re-enact history, so get them actively involved! One powerful example is a slaveship experiential exercise. Show students a diagram of the inside of a slave ship and discuss. Volunteers must then stand (or if you want to be more accurate, lie down) extremely close to one another. Yarn can be lightly wrapped around their wrists and ankles to represent the way slaves were chained to one another. Once students are in position, they must remain still and silent for 30-60 seconds. After going back to their seats, elicit their feelings, questions, and ideas about the Middle Passage. The follow-up discussion is critical in allowing students to process and make connections. An activity such as this can be disturbing but will help students understand the reality of slave transport and how abominable the slave trade really was. Another idea is to have pairs of students share a desk for a period of time, and give privileges and treats only to the 'owner' of the desk. To help kids understand what life was like on the Oregon Trail, they can keep only three items in their desk for the day and have to make do without everything else. To help them understand why wars start, set up a game of tug-of-war in which the teams are grossly mismatched (ie 15 and 5) and discuss how unfairness can lead to conflict (such as the Revolutionary War). Click the photo below to read important guidelines for this powerful exercise.
9) ABC Books
After completing a unit, reference your word wall/ word bank (see idea #2) or have students generate a list of important vocabulary words going through the alphabet one letter at a time. Have each student choose a letter of the alphabet and a corresponding vocab word, and create a page explaining what the term means. The pages can be bound together in a class book.
10) Extensions Menus
These can be used for gifted students and fast finishers or as center activities. Create extra activities for students to further their understanding of the concepts taught. Students can choose a set number of items to complete, or can be required to choose 3 in a tac-tac-toe pattern so that you can ensure they have a variety of activities. Click the photo to enlarge.
11) I Have..., Who Has...?
You may be familiar with this for math facts, but it works well for any subject. Each child gets a card with an answer to one question and a new question for the next person. You start with the person whose card reads 'START'. That person reads his/her question: "Who has... a piece of land that is surrounded by water on 3 sides?". The person with the card that says 'peninsula', says, "I have peninsula. Who has... the continent that is also the name of a country?". The person with 'Australia' would respond, and so on. You can run an internet search to find 'I Have... Who Has..'. games already created by other teachers, and after the kids have had some experience with the game, they can create their own. It's a great review activity no matter how you incorporate it.
12) Postcards
Have students create postcards from the culture or time period they are studying. The postcard should be written as if the child actually lived at that time and is explaining daily life to a farway friend. The postcard could mention recent activities, chores, weather, etc. You can provide students with a photocopied postcard outline and picture or have students create their own. The idea of a postcard is a bit difficult for young children, but with some concept development and modeling beforehand, it can be a great synthesis activity and provides a unique opportunity for writing practice.
13) Paper Bag History
This is a great culminating activity. Have students collect or create 'artifacts' to represent a time period or historical person/event. They must put a set number of items in a paper bag and pull them out one at a time, in a predetermined order, for the class to predict what event is being represented. For example, in an American History unit, a child could make a paper bag for Thomas Jefferson, and pull out a student-made replica of the Declaration of Independence, a picture of the plantation Jefferson lived on (printed from the internet), a foam #3 (for the 3rd president) from a puzzle; and a drawing of Jefferson. Students can write their guesses down after each item is pulled out, and discuss their answers at the end before the child reveals who the paper bag items represent.
14) Artifact Discovery (from 'The Energy to Teach' by Donald Graves)
Choose items from a specific time period or culture- books, blueprints, photos, musical scores, paintings, etc. Have students explore the artifacts and discover the tie period through them. Donald Graves writes, "The objects eventually lead to people and it is through the eyes of these people that the time period is understood". This could be done gradually, with students exploring one new artifact each day and slowly making connections between the items to draw inferences about the culture. This approach makes history concrete and can be adapted to fit your teaching style and strengths: students could pretend to be archaeologists and dig for the artifacts in a sand table; you could dress up like a detective and make a big show of pulling the artifact out of a special container; students could catalog the items in journals or do group discoveries. The possibilities are really endless!
15) Sequential Questioning
This technique is also from Donald Graves. Either you or a special visitor present an object relevant to the curriculum to the class. No explanation is given, but students can ask as many questions as they want. This works especially well for items which they have little background information on because they are actively constructing their knowledge. After the questioning session, ask "When did the session become interesting to you? Which question(s) brought the most information?". Donald Graves suggest having students bring in objects as well and experience the process from the other side. This process teaches children that being able to ask questions can be just as powerful as being able to give answers.
What if *I* hate social studies?
Then I'm proud of you for even bothering to read this page, because a lot of teachers don't even try to step out of their comfort zone. Chances are, you hate social studies either because it's boring to you and/or the kids (in which case, you now have a ton of interesting activities to try) or you just don't know anything about history and you're uncomfortable teaching it. The good news is, you can TELL the kids this! I like to explain to my class that everyone has a subject (or two or three) that are harder for them than others, and mine is science. I tell them that we'll be learning together, and that when they ask questions I don't know the answer to, we'll write them down and later go online or ask the science specialist to help us. No one is good at everything! Be honest with your kids. Chose a social studies read aloud with lots of interesting tidbits about a subject you don't know much about, and learn together. ABC books are great for this. For example, I know next to nothing about the Revolutionary War, especially since it's not in our curriculum. However, the boys in my class always love to read about wars, and I want to encourage them to learn about things they love, so I got a book called 'ABC's of the Revolutionary War'. Each letter of the alphabet stands for one factoid, and we learn together about important people and things in the war during our daily read-aloud time. Afterwards, we have a general idea of what life was like during the war- with no research on my part, no testing, no worksheets. Just learning for the sake of learning. What a concept. :-)
A (really really really) important note for primary grade teachers!
For whatever reason, there's a tendency in the early grades to focus on fiction. This is compounded by most reading series which focus too heavily on this genre even in the upper grades. On behalf of intermediate teachers everywhere, I beg you to take nonfiction text instruction seriously! Many students come to third grade with no knowledge of how to use photos, captions, or charts to help them read because they've been exposed almost solely to fairy tales and other fictional stories. The majority of text on many state standardized tests is nonfiction, and that puts third graders in a really rough place- to learn strategies for a whole new genre in 6 months. Research shows that 80% of reading that adults do in America is nonfiction, so it's incredibly important for kids to learn this life skill. And if those two reasons aren't convincing enough... do a reading survey with your kids and find out what they like to read about. I guarantee you that they will mention animals, natural disasters, dinosaurs, and other nonfiction topics. Kids (especially boys) love to read informational books and magazines- and when they're motivated to read, they'll learn skills more easily and apply them to new text.
One of the best things you can do for your K-2 students is have non-fiction read-alouds several times per week in place of your fiction read-alouds. Have kids predict what they think is happening in the photos, then point to the captions as you read them and explain how the caption helps you understand what's happening. Think aloud as you read, modeling how to adjust your reading rate for non-fiction text and re-read when you get to parts that are heavy with information. Model how to use the index ("James really wants to find out what horses like to eat. Let's check the index and see which chapter might tell us about that"). Have kids draw diagrams to help them understand what you're reading. If you're not sure what else to do, ask an upper grade teacher in your school. You are doing your students an incredible service by exposing them to nonfiction and getting them excited about learning about their world. On behalf of upper grade teachers (including those middle and high school) and your students, thank you for taking on this challenge!! :-)
More resources
NEW 5/19/07! My photos, printables, and activities for United States History and World History!
